Café Mondegar, others won’t vacate Colaba’s Metro House building

Despite an eviction notice from the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT), the tenants of Metro House in Colaba, which houses iconic establishments such as the famed Café Mondegar, have refused to vacate the premises. The port trust will initiate legal action, if the tenants fail to vacate the premises by Sunday.

According to a source from the trust, the notice was issued because the leaseholders flouted the conditions mentioned in the lease agreement and also made illegal alterations to the structure, which cannot be regularised under the current rules.

“The matter is not of pressing importance, it has been exaggerated astronomically. We don’t plan to vacate the premises anytime soon, because we have done nothing wrong. Our tenants and our businesses will continue, and you will find Metro House exactly as it is today even two months later. If forced evictions begin on Sunday, we will approach the court for a stay. This is a case of misjudgement, as we have explained in our legal reply to the port trust authorities,” said a spokesperson for the Metro House.

“We will not vacate the premises. The notice has been delivered to the landlord [Metro House], and the issue is between them and the MbPT. My contract is still valid, and there is no way I’m giving up my shop. I will approach the court if someone tries to forcefully shut my shop,” said Rudramuni Biradar, owner, Search Word bookstore in the building.

A spokesperson for Café Mondegar previously told HT that the café too had nothing to do with it, as the legal tussle is between Metro House and the MbPT.